


Two Plus Three Equals Five

by Pegastick



Category: Ejen Ali
Genre: ??? - Freeform, Baker AU, F/F, Oneshot, Other, Past Lovers, Trez is hced as a baker
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-23
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-03-08 13:35:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13459341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pegastick/pseuds/Pegastick
Summary: A raving beauty befriending a prefect? It's more likely than you think.A raving beauty and a prefect taking a techie under their wing? Hard to believe, but they're there.They've gone through some tough times.Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or setting; all rights go to Wau Animation. I just wrote a crazy backstory about them that probably makes zero sense.





	Two Plus Three Equals Five

**Author's Note:**

> *yells into the avoid* Hiiiiii nonexistent Ejen Ali Ao3 fandom XXDD 
> 
> In case the title wasn't indication enough, this oneshot will be about Dos, Trez and Cinco, except of course I gave them civilan names (except Jenny lol). The Ejen Ali comics had a brief backstory on how Dos and Trez ended up joining Uno and I felt like expanding on it a bit. Hope you enjoy XD

"Hey, Lina~"

She didn't look up. She didn't bother. Instead, she kept her head down and continued writing out her assignment, ignoring the boy leaning on her desk in front of her (and completely invading her personal space). She wanted so badly to smack his grubby hands off her table top (or at least punch the infatuated expression right off his face) but that would just be giving him what he wanted - and she was having none of that.

"Whatcha doin'?" He sing-songed, inching behind her so he could look over her shoulder.

Lina slammed her book shut and pushed her chair back, making sure it jabbed the boy in the stomach before making her way out of the classroom and into the hallway, trying to make it look like she was casually talking a stroll and not escaping a lovedrunk schoolmate.

It's been like this for the past two years; boys from all levels would flock to her; cheer her name whenever she walked through the halls, send her letters, gifts, cheesy pick-up limes that never had any effect. They would pick up her things and try to compliment her on them; "confess" to her, telling her she was beautiful; following her around like deranged teenage paparazzi, taking pictures of her with every gadget, from a cellphone to a DSLR camera. They weren't even trying to be subtle about it; the boys aimed right at her face, constantly blinding her with flashes.

Lina tried to not pay them any mind - she was at school to study, not entertain pubescent adolescents - but it was getting harder by the hour, until one day she finally reached the end of her tether and flung her metal pencil case at a third-year who thought it was funny to "document" her with his camera for the school yearbook. She had thrown a few tantrums, broke a few noses and even reported to the school authorities, but no action was taken. They just continued coming, continued calling her, trying to nab her as their own.

To this day, Lina reasoned she just had to deal with it (though in her opinion, these guys were too dense to notice that she could and would never be interested). Who knew her biggest problem in secondary school was being a beauty?

 _Where_ _is_ _the_ _teacher_ _?!_  Lina thought, just as the boy pinpointed her whereabouts, lilting out her name. She picked up the pace, determined to make it to the next building on campus or at least the stairs.

Despite the furtive nature in her step, a few other boys took notice of her presence as her classmate pursued her down the hall, his voice drawing nearer with every step.

Speed-walking turned to jogging, and before she knew it, Lina had reached a dead end, cornered by a desperate, amorous schoolmate.

 _Oh_ _,_ _brother_ , she sighed inwardly, taking a fighting stance. She wasn't going down like this; she'd start a fracas if she had to. Lina balled her fists and faced him with her most menacing glare.

The boy lunged forward and slapped his palms against the wall behind her, trapping her between his arms. " Come on, I just wanna talk. Is there something wrong with getting to know you a little better?" He shot her what she assumed was a flirtatious smile.

Lina recoiled in disgust, bringing her leg in -

"And what might you two be doing?"

Lina froze, her eyes moving from her "admirer" to a burly figure behind him. His stern expression matched his authoritative power pose - legs slightly wide apart, hands folded behind his back, back straight - and his spotless, pressed school uniform was at odds with his thick, bristly haircut. Light glinted off a metal badge that read  **PREFECT**  pinned to the upper left side of his chest.

"We were just having a friendly conversation," Lina's classmate responded amiably.

"Don't look so friendly to me," the prefect pointedly raised his eyebrows at their position. His frown deepened. "Get back to class."

"Come on, dude -"

"Get back to class or I will make sure you never see the school grounds again."

The boy huffed and slinked away, muttering some choice words under his breath. The prefect watched his back disappear into the distance before glancing back at her with a quizzical expression.

Lina was at a loss for words. Not because he was good-looking (she never found a lot of guys appealing, especially after the last two years) but because after months of having to fend for herself, someone actually bothered to act up when she had gotten in hot water. Lina shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what to say.

The prefect held out a brown paper bag, his face stoic as ever.

Lina cautiously accepted the offer, contemplating on whether she should open it or defenestrate it out the window adjacent to her. "Uh, thanks..."

The prefect grunted, and now that he wasn't standing in the shadows she had a clear view of his name badge:

 

**QUENTIN**

 

"...Quentin," she finished, catching him flinch at the sound of his unsuitable name.

"It's 'Q'," he said firmly, folding his arms.

The bag crinkled as Lina unrolled its mouth and peered inside. Three cream puffs wrapped in plastic sat at the bottom.

"You look like you've had a rough day," the prefect said, his gruff voice betraying no emotion. "You can have 'em if you want. Share it with your friends or something."

Lina stiffened. "Uh..."

Cue the awkward silence.

Q regarded her in disbelief. "You're kidding, right?"

Lina formed an irritated scowl. Between her solitary nature and the fact that she was regularly dissed by green-eyed girls for being a knockout, companionships at school were non-existent.

Q sighed. "Fine, you can hang with me. Isolating yourself makes you a target, anyway. Just don't break any rules and we're good." He pivoted on his heel and goose-stepped down the hall.

Lina, however, was still rooted to the spot. She scratched her cheek, still puzzled by the ordeal. She supposed she was lucky that a prefect was around. Hanging around him wouldn't be so bad if it meant she could find peace at school from meddling admirers. Still, a prefect was still a prefect, and Lina wasn't exactly the most well-behaved student. Getting acquainted with him might actually get her out from the frying pan and into the fire.

_"_ _You_ _coming_ _?"_

_Screw_ _it_ , Lina shook out her thoughts and nipped after Q.  _I'll_ _deal_ _with_ _it_ _._

* * *

 

Being friends with Q was really not that bad.

He was a teen of few words; small talk was not an option, and trivial matters were his bête noir. Lina initially assumed that he was all guns and no brain, but it turns out he was one of the brighest students in SMT 1. Being in different classes didn't stop them from rendezvousing at the school rooftop to go over their studies. Her grades have vastly improved after Q decided she was worthless and insisted on becoming study buddies. His specialty was hacking, and he taught Lina methods that teachers never covered in coding class. Sometimes they would hack into the school's lame duck of a security system and make it go haywire for fun (for a school prefect, his moral judgement was surpisingly flexible). Lina considered using her newly acquired skills to seek revenge on the boys who caused her so much misery, but Q told her not to bother.

"I've seen their grades," Q wrinkled his nose in distaste. "Never you mind; their chickens will come home to roost."

Q was obnoxiously proud of his hair - he knows more about salon products than any beauty fanatic in their grade, and uses his expertise to barter with them for information about shady students. His luscious locks take a different form every day - coiffured, fade haircuts, side part and even bouffant before a teacher pestered him to return it to a more "school-appropriate" hairstyle.

"You're gonna get bald with all those chemicals you put in your hair," Lina rolled her eyes as her friend smoothed down his tresses for the umpteenth time.

Q emitted a dismissive sound. "Says the person who streaks her locks purple with hair chalk."

Lina realised that she and Q communicate more through bickering than actual talking, but that was fine with them both. They've bonded over computers and technical fields, taking an interest in encrypting codes. Both also have an abnormal affinity for street-fighting, and more often than not they'll arrive at school with a few fresh bruises and triumph over another fracas won. Q belonged to a family of bakers; he whipped up sweet treats as often as he switched hairstyles, and some days they were a welcome change from the mediocore menu items in the school canteen.

Half a (thankfully drama-free) year passed; people were starting to speculate, and unwanted rumors began circulating around the school.

"Adelina, are you and Quentin...y'know...together or something?"

Lina blinked at her classmate's question. After spending so long hanging around the heavyset prefect, hearing his full name sounded strange. When the query finally registered in her brain, she made a face. "Bleurgh, no, what made you think that?"

"Well, it's just that you two are always hanging out together and -"

"You and your BFF are attached at the hip, but I don't assume you two are going out, don't I?"

That shut her up.

Thing is, Lina wasn't interested in guys, and Q wasn't interested in romantic relations at all, which is partly why they're comfortable around each other. In fact, Lina had never fallen for anyone...until her third year, that is.

* * *

 

Q had been acting weird all morning. His mind has been far away, responding to Lina's chatter with distracted grunts. The girl thought that is was just back-to-school jitters - starting their third year  _was_  pretty nerve-wracking - until recess rolled around.

Instead of heading for their usual table (the farthest one away from the food stalls near the exit; optimal for sprinting back to class), Q plopped down near the drinks stall with a mug of teh tarik, promptly making a steeple of his fingers. His eyes stared dead ahead, unblinking.

Lina furrowed her brow and waved a hand in front of his face. Not even an irritated pout. She glanced over her shoulder and spotted an eerie sight.

A group of students had gathered two tables down, filling up the seats with a few hunkered down over the tabletop. Lina couldn't fathom what they were doing until the group slightly parted - and that was when her blood ran cold.

"Are they...?" she asked.

"I think so," Q muttered. "I've encountered the same situation this morning, newbie and all."

Yes, newbie. The mousy girl Lina could make out through the mob of students was alien to her (and she would know - she  _did_  hang around a prefect, after all). Judging by the hand gestures they were making, these students were interrogating her, and by the looks of it, the girl was having a hard time keeping up. One of them suddenly swiped the girl's tablet, tapping on its screen and laughing as he showed its contents to the group.

Lina heard the rustling of fabric and turned to see Q rise from his seat and head towards the group, jaw clenched and eyes burning with hatred. "Q, wait up!"

"Oh, you," one of the students said flatly as Q approached, stone-faced. "Can't you see we're busy?"

Lina materialised behind the prefect, her face a mask of fury as she loomed over the group. "Scram."

A few guys laughed at her attempt to diffuse the situation. "Calm down, Lina."

"Guys, check it out, this girl thinks she can code like a professional!" A female pupil held up the newbie's tablet.

"I don't," the new student piped up. "I just learnt how -"

"Being quite the snoutband, aren't you?"

The group roared with laughter, some slinging a few mocking comments the girl's way. She hung her head, lips quivering as their snarking finally made its mark.

Q slammed his palms on the tabletop, face beet red from fury. " ALL OF YOU!  **BEAT** **IT** **!** "

The students dispersed, some rolling their eyes and throwing out a few insults, others making a face as they walked off. One tossed the newcomer's tablet onto the greasy floor, sending the girl scrambling to pick it up.

Lina extended a hand to her. "Nothing broken?"

The girl shook her head, avoiding her gaze as she placed her still-quaking hand into Lina's slender one. She looked young for her age, with scrawny limbs and long hair tied into two red pigtails. A pair of aviator spectacles perched on her nose.

"You got a name?" Q enquired.

"Jenny Woo," the girl replied in a high-pitched voice, lifting her head.

Lina's heart stopped. Two dark brown eyes locked with hers, rendering her motionless. Jenny nervously tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, eyes darting around the room before meeting Lina's once more. A shaky smile made its way onto her face, her cheeks turning as red as her hair. The tips of Lina's ears warmed, and all of a sudden she found it difficult to breathe.

" _Lina_ ," Q hissed, already halfway back to their table.

"Guh." Lina gestured towards him. "You...uh...wanna come with?" She blushed harder when she realised they were still holding hands.

Jenny sheepishly shrugged and let herself be pulled along as Lina as she caught up to her friend.

From that day forth, that table has become their permanent spot in the canteen. It turns out that Jenny was the daughter of esteemed software developers; her parents have been moved to their company's Cyberaya branch, dragging her along with them. She'd inherited their love of technology and had learnt advanced programming from them; coupled with her vast knowledge of technical writing and electronic appliances, she was practically a shoo-in for Sekolah Menengah Teknologi Cyberaya 1. Unfortunately, some students had made her out to be privileged and have been giving her a hard time during her first week of school until Q intervened.

"Forget them, kid," Q waved his hand dismissively towards the death rays pupils were shooting their way. "What matters is that you're better than those fopdoodles."

"Being smart doesn't automatically make you a know-it-all," Lina added.

"Thank you, Adelina," Jenny beamed before surveying the envious looks they were getting. "But I think others disagree."

Q pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. Why did he have to befriend the most attention-grabbing people?

Jenny was in the year below them, so the three of them never had class together. Still, the trio spent as much time together as possible during school hours. Q had other friends, of course, and eventually, so did Jenny, but Lina chose to remain a lone wolf. She didn't need anyone else, just a stocky prefect obsessed with haircare and pastries and a tablet-smart junior programmer (who she may or may not harbour feelings for. No, she doesn't).

One time, when Q and Lina were having a cram session together (Jenny couldn't make it because of family matters), the boy asked out of the blue, "Can you stop it already?"

Lina glanced up from highlighting her textbook, her face passive. "Stop what?"

"Your banter with Jenny! It's infuriating to watch!" Q agressively bit into a powdered donut. "Just own up to it, Adelina!"

Lina felt heat crawling up her neck. She gulped and busied herself with her notes, gliding her highlighter over the slippery pages, trying (and failing) to conceal her laboured breathing.

Q tapped his meaty fingers on the desk, narrowing his eyes at her through the curls of his Elvis-inspired hairdo. Lina kept her head down, wishing that his searing gaze could be directed somewhere else.

A pregnant pause stretched between them, seeming to go on for an eternity. He finally huffed indignantly and turned back to his papers. "Fine. Have it your way. But if you get tortured for years that's not my problem."

It became his problem. Two aggravating years of abashed glances, flustered interactions and endless sickly sweet smiles drove him cuckoo. Neither one made a move. Neither one even  _tried_. The two were obviously in love with each other, and he was the suffering piggy-in-the-middle!

Both were too timid to make the first move; but time and tide waited for no (wo)man, and soon the inevitable occured, impacting the three much more than any of them predicted.

"You're moving," Lina's eyes widened in surprise as they skimmed over the few cardboard boxes strewn throughout Jenny's now scarcely decorated bedroom.

Jenny lifted her shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. "Father had been transferred to another chapter. The town I'm moving to isn't that far from here so I could...um...maybe visit you guys sometime?" She nervously toyed with the ends of her hair.

Lina perked up. "R-really? You would do that?" Then she realised how stupid that sounded. Jenny wasn't like her and Q;  _of_ _course_  she would go out of her way to reconcile with them.

"Here," Q handed Jenny a red plastic bag. "For the road."

A potpurri of pleasant aromas wafted up and flooded her nose as she untied it, peering inside to find several paper bags branded with Q's family bakery's logo holding her favourite confectioneries. Her eyes welled up, threatening to spill onto her cheeks as she wrapped them both in a bear hug. "I-I'll miss you guys, though my parents probably won't," she joked, trying to lighten up the somber atmosphere.

The trio shared a round of weak laughs. One look at Q's scars, sloppy wardrobe and Lina's purple hair streaks paired with her all-black ensembles and Jenny's parents immediately slammed the door in their faces when they had first visited Jenny's house. Even after two years, they were still uneasy about their daughter fraternizing with them.

"I better head back," Q said. "My family's expecting me at the bakery." He shot Lina a questioning look, which was replied with a roll of the eyes and a nod. "See you soon, Jenny."

The two girls lapsed into awkward silence as Q's thundering footsteps faded. Lina gazed around the bedroom once more, reality finally sinking in. "This is it, huh?"

Jenny held up her phone. "We'll keep in touch, right?"

Lina gave her a watery smile and raised her own cell in agreement.

Jenny bit her lip and glanced away, eyes screwed shut. Faster than Lina could comprehend, she lunged forward and locked her arms around her, squeezing her as hard as her spindly limbs would allow.

Lina stiffened, her arms dangling uselessly at her sides as her face reddened.  _What_ _do I_ _do_ _?_  She wasn't good with physical contact, darnit (especially when it came from Jenny).

As if sensing her hesitance, Jenny mumbled into her ear in a lighthearted tone, "Hug me, you nitwit."

Said nitwit sputtered but edged her hands up to lightly rest against Jenny's back. Once she was certain she wouldn't get slapped, she sagged in relief, pulling Jenny close and burying her face in her shoulder. She rarely does hugs; this might be an exception.

Once they parted, Lina chuckled nervously. That was so  _awkward_  but also so  _comforting_? She will never understand Jenny's ways.

Holding Jenny's delicate hands in hers, she had a momentary flash of déjà vu; this felt like when they first met. How time flies.

The silence had grown comfortable; still, Lina's eyes were out on stalks when Jenny interwined their fingers together, resting her forehead on hers. She might be leaving the next day, never to be seen again, but if there was one thing Jenny was good at it was making the most out of every opportunity, just like she made the most out of every gadget she built.

But no gadget ever lasts forever, and Lina, Q and Jenny were no different.

* * *

 

Q's fist missed Dos by inches, nearly knocking her shades off as she ducked to avoid it. Activating her velocity boots, she sidestepped his second swing, plucked her Shox Stix from her bun and let it fly in one fluid move.

" _Aarghh!_ "

While Q quaked on his knees, recovering from the electric shock, Dos sneered. "Looks like those muscles are all for show; gigantic build but weak stamina."

Q's mouth formed a petulant scowl. "You're really asking for it, aren't you?!" He aimed another blow to her head, Dos vaulted over his shoulder. Her ears picked up a clang and she leaped into the air, dodging a metal barrel the baldie threw at her but failing to evade his attack a split second later.

"You're done for!"

_BZZT_ _!_

Dos smirked, his knuckles an inch from her face.  _You_ _were_ _saying_ _?_

Q's eyes bulged as he found himself rendered immobile. "Wh-what?"

Bright striae lit up along his arms — cybernetic veins he had opted to infuse into his arms years ago. "My arms — are being controlled?"

"Greetings, Detainee 0303," a deep voice resonated into Dos' rundown hideout.  Q glanced over his shoulder and spotted a dark, masked figure on Dos' laptop screen.

"Thank you for your demonstration. You might be of use to our mission."

"Who are you?" Q snapped. "And how'd you know about these?" He glanced down at his frozen arms. "I've wiped out all data on my arms..."

"Ah, I know all about your arms,  _Trez_ ," the figure sounded smug. "We need your talents for our 'mission'."

"And if I refuse?"

As if on their own accord, Trez's arms banged onto the floor, the electricity flowing through his veins intensifying. The mystery man's eyes narrowed into slits. "You don't have a choice."

Sweat began to drip down Trez's face as he kept himself from submitting entirely into Uno's control. "If you're not enough, there are plenty more devious fish in  the sea. Consider this a deposit. We'll be waiting." The video call winked out.

_BAM_ _!_

Trez lifted his meaty fist off the keyboard, watching as the pulsing light of his veins dimmed. "Cis."

Dos remained unfazed by his disapproving look and stepped aside to reveal —

"Jenny?" Trez's jaw went slack.

"0505," 'Jenny' corrected coldly. "A.k.a., Cinco." A poisonous smile graced her features as she held out a gloved hand.

Trez started to reject when his arms crackled with energy. Jenny's –  _Cinco's_  – expression hardened, daring him to disobey. Her other hand clutched her trusty tablet, which she was using to flare up his veins.

" _Fui_ _quod_ _es,_ _eris_ _quod_ _sum_ ***** , Trez." Jenny's smile widened into a sly grin. "Welcome to the Numero squad, 0303."

Trez simmered in silence, glaring at his (former) friends. Gone was their easy camaraderie; the trio was now headed towards a toxic alliance lead by a man who doesn't even have the guts to face the world maskless.

For a moment, Trez thought he noticed a flash in Dos' eyes; of regret, sadistic joy or sadness, he didn't know. He couldn't understand why she would choose to be a pawn in someone's game, someone with mysterious aspirations which could very well be lucrative.

"So," he spat, glaring pointedly at the two women, "how'd you meet again anyway?"

Cinco and Dos exchanged glances, eyes lingering for longer than they had to before Jenny spoke, "Well,  _meminerunt_ _omnia_ _amantes_. We found each other; and now, Uno found you."

**Author's Note:**

> *I was once what you are, you will be what I am
> 
> "Expand on it a bit", she said. Reality begs to differ XD
> 
> I don't know how I eneded up with a 4000-word count but I hope it's not too long a read. I hope it's not too hard to understand either. Also hELP I've fallen into the deep pit of DosJen hell and I can't gET OUTT
> 
> I usually don't take an interest in the villain henchmen, but Wau actually touched upon them a little and their backstory has a lot of potential, plus I love their dynamic, especially Dos and Trez's bickering. Reminds me a lot of how some best friends communicate XD They're constantly exasperated with each other it's hilarious
> 
> Yes! I know the Numeros are named after Spanish words but who says I can't include Latin phrases lol
> 
> I have a dump of fics I'll post here to avoid judgmental AliLicia shippers so expect some more content lmao XD
> 
> Peg, signing out!


End file.
